The Mayor of Housing, My-ACE China, has urged donors to target creating entrepreneurs who would not need to come back for more donations.
This is coming on the heels of an agreement sealed between the Rotary Club of Port Harcourt and the Mayor of Housing, who is known as the real estate success strategist, to promote entrepreneurship in the youth and to execute projects towards delivery kits to pregnant women.
China said at the weekend that donating without a plan may be a temporary measure in charity but that he planned to create strategies into his philanthropic activities to empower young people into business owners.
China began last weekend by donating N1m to the Club and promised to sponsor an event where up to 100 pregnant women would be supported with delivery kits
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He harped on strategies to make impactful donations.
China, who is the CEO of the Housing and Construction Mayor Limited, spoke at his honorary award and eventual induction into the Rotary Club family at the weekend.
The real estate guru told newsmen that says strategic donating is what will help people out of poverty. He said ineffective philanthropy would rather create highly dependent people who would always come back for help.
The investor said the preliminary philanthropy he is doing is not the effective type, saying; “Charity is an ineffective philanthropy because if you give a man fish, he will come back tomorrow for another fish and you can’t feed him all your life.
“So, charity of donation is actually charity of backing people (carrying people on your back). And the philosophy says you can’t back more than two people, but you can help a limitless number of people. So effective charity which I’ll start doing when I have more time (because we are still at the herculean stage where activities are more than profit), will be real charity which is to make the person you’re helping to be independent of your help subsequently. So, the two things I believe that will cause real charity are education and psychological development.”
He said this would make people develop grit (the emotional intelligence and psychological development). This, he said, is because experts now say that emotional intelligence is more important than intelligence quotient.
It was about teaching people to have the intelligence quotient and the emotional quotient to build more during hard times. “It was Frank Lloyd Wright that said the human race builds most notably when adversities were most against us. So adverse times are opportunities to build. If you have someone that will inspire you with education of your IQ (intelligence quotient) and your EQ (emotional quotient), then we’ll only do charity of capital.”
He said without EQ and IQ, capital is just a bread. “With EQ and IQ, capital is a seed that will be sown and yield harvest and take more people out of poverty, making them independent of that seed subsequently.
“But when you give people seed, without IQ and EQ, they turn their seed to bread. And when they eat their seed, they’ll come begging tomorrow. So that kind of charity is ineffective and we are just doing it right now because we don’t have the chance and time for effective charity.”
On his induction as member of the Port Harcourt Club, he said he found he had been a Rotarian at heart with their mantra that says, ‘Service Over Self’. The Mayor of Housing gave his quote that says: Your life is as big or small as your contribution.
“So, I believe in a constant unending expansion of life through contribution. So, I want to leave this legacy in this life to have contributed the most to the most people in the most ways. So, when I was called upon to take on honorary membership, initially I came in just to do my contributions and go. But I don’t know there’s a heartmospheric connection between my heart of Rotary and the heart of Rotary of the Rotarians and that heartmospheric connection, connected in the heartmosphere and they caught me and made me, not just a member, but their first permitted full virtual member.
China donated N1m to support the support the work of Rotary in PH and promised to support another event where over 100 pregnant women would be assisted with delivery kits.
The event witnessed award also on Dr Tammy Wenike Danagogo, the secretary of the Rivers State Government, who was represented by Mr Ogonda Bright, special assistant to the secretary to the Rivers State government (SSG) applauded Rotary for great works for humanity.
The SSG is said to be remarkable in giving scholarships to people, support to widows, raising of political leaders, and supports to family members.
Others were His Highness, Sir Henry Micah, and Herbert Unegbu.
Don’t give leftover as philanthropy – Ibioku, new president:
In her speech, Ibioku Whyte Enia-Harris, who was installed President, Rotary Club of Port Harcourt (2024-2025), said; “Our club has been built on a strong leadership foundation, and I am fortunate to have a membership that is fully committed to the Rotary ideal of ‘Service Above Self’, and continues to go the extra mile in building the club, and carrying out the many worthwhile projects that we undertake for the benefit of our community.”
She pointed out that many people were in need throughout the zone and the world whose only hope will come from Rotary. “Let us all leave here ready to make their lives better in any way that we can. As Rotarians, it will not be good enough to give only what we have left over or what we can spare, but we must truly give of ourselves with new vigor in support of the ideals of Rotary. Let us lead the way as Rotary shares its legacy of ‘Service Above Self’. We will be fortified with the necessary knowledge, skills and tools too.”
On the Mayor of Housing and philanthropy, the Rotary brochure said the investor has touched many sectors in Rivers State and beyond. “He has sponsored the Press Week of a section of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) in Rivers State in an effort to build reputation capital for the State through effective media practice.”
The Mayor of Housing’s unrelenting activities and advocacy programmes have earned him a spot in the ’50 Legends of Rivers State’. “He also has earned the Professional Leadership Certificate as Fellow of Global Institute of Leadership & Governance as well as UN Peace Ambassador. He played critical part in the Rivers State Economic and Investment Summit 2024 to the admiration of Government and Public Sector authorities.”
The former chief of staff in Rivers State Government House, Engr Emeka Woke, who is now the Director-General of the Nigerian Oil Spill Detection and Response Agency (NOSDRA), whose birthday fell on that day, graced the occasion and encouraged Rotary to continue its globally impactful service to humanity.